


Shattered Time

by Dreaming_Writer, Gays_Gals_And_Pals, Umbren_Shadow



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords
Genre: Dimension Travel, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gay, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Canon, Redemption, Time Travel, Two Links (Teenager and Child), child!Link
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 13:54:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29154672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreaming_Writer/pseuds/Dreaming_Writer, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gays_Gals_And_Pals/pseuds/Gays_Gals_And_Pals, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Umbren_Shadow/pseuds/Umbren_Shadow
Summary: Shadow hadn't expected to survive shattering the Dark Mirror. To be honest, an overdramatic heroic death wasn't even the worst they could imagine.Suddenly falling alive from the sky a year in the future was unexpected, though, especially once they find that they're not the only time-traveler in this unexpected familiar but still different timeline. And Vaati is suddenly somewhat decent...? Oh dear.At least Shadow has chances to see their Vio again...right?
Relationships: Blue Link & Green Link & Red Link & Shadow Link & Vio Link, Link & Shadow Link, Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Shadow Link/Vio Link, Vaati & Shadow Link, Zelda/Link (one-sided)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 25





	1. Lost in Time

**Author's Note:**

> Weekly chapter uploads! Every Tuesday.

Darkness... Darkness is what they saw after they faded to light...  
Heh...how ironic is this... wait... hold on...  
They feel air... it's really windy here…  
No, not windy… their heart... it's beating fast... and this feeling...  
...falling...  
They're falling... falling into darkness... 

They hear a bird caw in surprise... wait, a bird?

The person opens their eyes, and it's not darkness, but blue... blue... blue, and birds... the sky... falling...  
"Oh shit!" they shout, and turn around to see the ground, fast approaching.  
They give another shout, and think how nice it would be to fly, as they close their eyes, extending their arms in front of them…  
...  
They never hit the ground.  
They open one eye, and realise they're hovering over stone?  
"Oh right" they breathe, and flip, floating upright.  
"Forgot I can fly" they mumble, landing on their feet.

Vaati, who is wandering around Castle Town to find a place to read without being disturbed, sees a strange sight, someone...falling from the sky? Is that normal?  
He brushes it off as just normal Hyrule stuff but something about that...person seems familiar, so he watches from afar, narrowing his eyes to try and see if he can remember who they are.

The person chuckles, brushing off some dust and the fear they felt from falling... and dying…  
They take in their surroundings, and their eyes fall on a...they can't tell their gender, but they have light skin and hair, and... a look of recognition on their face…  
The young shade jogs over to them, maybe they can help.  
"Hey," they ask, voice more shaky than they'd like it to be. "Um, where am I?"

Vaati looks at the younger....Hylian(???) curiously, tilting his head and completely ignoring the other's question, they didn't look like they were from around here, were they perhaps ahfrom a different town?  
...no no...they look awfully a lot like that unbearable Link, maybe this is just some really dedicated fan, but how could they fly? He continues to think before finally he just decides he will figure it out...never. "You're in Hyrule." He replies, his tone of voice slightly annoyed.

They let out a sigh of relief.. but, this Hyrule looks different somehow. "Oh, heh thanks" they turn to leave, but they whip their head back to the person. "I'm Shadow by the way... What's yer name?" the now introduced Shadow asks them.  
Vaati's eyes widened, or the one eye that was visible.  
Shadow...that name was definitely familiar, were they...?  
...No...it couldn't be...Shadow died....he couldn't still be alive.  
"Vaati."

Shadow backs away in shock, almost scared. They then shake their head... no, it can't be...  
This person and... him must just share the same name... he can't be that, that potato.  
"Sorry, you just happen to have the same name as.. someone" they grumble at the last word.  
"What a coincidence, you too share the same name as someone I used to know...." Vaati replies, what was their problem? Did this other person...hurt them in some way?  
Shadow's eyes go bright green... what if... it's not a coincidence...  
They chuckle. Their Vaati never noticed the eye thing...they hope this one doesn't as well. "That's, some coincidence..." they say, voice still shaky.

Vaati is very observant, or he is just really used to someone being scared of him, but something is off about the other's eyes....he hadn't really been paying attention to them but had they just changed color? Must have been the lighting...and the other's voice was shaky, what was he so scared about? Not like Vaati would be able to do anything to them besides make their day bad. "Hmmm… Well, if you're lost I recommend going to the inn."  
Shadow lets out a shaky sigh, closing their eyes and shaking their head…  
They then open them back up, revealing a dull blue. "Heh, yeah that sounds like a good idea... um, which way is it?"

Vaati points over to the direction to the nearby inn.  
Shadow looks the way he points, and sees a building that says "Castle Town Inn".  
"Oh" they turn towards it. "Thanks!" and they speed off, faster than the normal Hylian.  
Vaati watches Shadow run off and sighs, shaking his head, people were so weird, but thank Hylia that interaction is over, what a strange...Hylian.

Shadow enters, and makes their way to the desk. But when they pat their pockets they stop...shit, outta Rupees…  
They sigh, and sit on one of the chairs... damn, what do they do now?

The young boy pops out from under the table. No one, not even he himself, is sure how exactly he got there but the fact still stands that he's there now. He blinks at the strange purple haired goth weirdo he appeared next to for a moment with large baby blue eyes and then decides to simply duck back under the table, hoping it'd take him back home.  
It didn't.

Shadow looks up as a green blur moves out from the table and back under it.  
"Hello?" they call, ducking their head to look under the table... it's a kid... who looks... just... like...  
"Hey buddy, whatcha doin?"  
"I dunno, you tell me" the child states, moving slightly further under the table. Stranger Danger Alert...  
"Hey, hey, shh, I ain't gonna hurt ya" the shade says, leaning back into their seat.  
"You look weird" the child points out. "Papa said not to talk with weirdos and to explicitly not trust them when they tell me they won't hurt me."  
Shadow chuckles "My, what a good father you have" 

They shake their head, trying to ignore the dejavu.. "He's right, I'm sorry. 'Names Shadow. Shadow Link" they extend their hand under the table "And you are...?"  
"Papa said not to tell strangers my name or address" the blonde's eyes are narrowed even further. "You are creepily friendly, Papa would say. You know what Papa does with creepers? He throws them into prison. Are you a creeper, Shadow?"  
Shadow pulls their hand back. "No... I literally just fell from the sky and know no one here..." They trail off... wait, did they get tossed into the past?

"So you're not a creeper..." the child looks thoughtful for a moment before plopping himself into the seat next to Shadow. "That's good, cause I dunno where I am either. I was just at home and then I'm under the table here. Weird, right? Almost as weird as you. I'm Link, by the way."  
The kid hadn't breathed at all why rattling all this down and was now trying to regain his breath. "You gonna buy me something to drink, Shadow? I'm kinda thirsty."  
Shadow chuckles. "Link, ey?" they sigh, "I used to know a Link...Four, in fact..." another sigh. It sounds sad...  
"And no, I don't have enough money to buy a room" they hang their head "Heh, I got nothin on me…"

"Me neither" Link shrugs. "But if someone points me the way to the castle, I can walk back home cause knights got knight barracks in it and papa has his own quarters cause he's Captain. We live there. Neat, right? How old are you?"  
Shadow looks at him, eyes shifting to bright amber.. he's a knight, his fathers captain, and he's called Link.. yep, they got tossed to the past... "Huh? Oh, I'm 15.. how old are you, Link?"  
"I'm eight!" he states, proudly showing eight fingers and a tooth gap in his proud grin.  
"Your eyes are funny, Shadow" he then states, still grinning.

7 years... Shadow was tossed back 7 years... that's, that's when Ganon showed them the mirror.. have they been given a second chance? Or... do they have to find a younger them and.. save them…  
"Huh?" Link's eye statement breaks their train of thought "Oh, yeah they ... they change depending on my mood!"

"Cool" the child states standing up in the seat to take Shadow's face in his hands to look at his eyes closer, squishing the cheeks between his fingers. "How do they do that?"  
Their eyes turn pink, last time a Link was this close Vio- they shake their head, eyes turning blue... though it's dull. "I... I have no idea" they lie.  
"Still cool," Link states, letting go and sitting down again. "So...where are we?"

"We're in the..." they chuckle "The inn" they look around "And I don't have any Rups... which means I have no place to live..." they sigh. "Damn"  
Link frowns, cocking his head sideways in thought: "Maybe...if we go back to my home, I can ask papa if he can help you. He's the good guy, so he helps people, y'know?"  
Shadow smiles at him. "Thanks bud" they say as they tap him on the nose.  
The boy goes cross eyed at the nose-boop, blinking. Then: "...you really are weird, though. Why go to an inn when you don't have money?"  
"I... I didn't realise I was out..." they get up, offering Link a hand up.. "To your home, sir Link" they joke with him.

Link doesn't take the hand cause his papa said to never ever do that with strangers but he still hops down the chair and waves for Shadow to follow: "Come on, let's go out of here."  
The shade lets their hand drop, a bit sad he didn't take it.  
"All rightyo" they say, walking after him.  
Link nods and then quickly leaves the inn with them.


	2. Welcome to a new age

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahem
> 
> Not me forgetting to add a chapter today  
> ~Shadow

One would think after living in a town for a long time, Link would recognize everything. Sadly though, everything seemed off. Stranger, slightly older. Some buildings seemed to be gone entirely, replaced by ashes or new ones. It worried Link greatly and made him a nervous, fidgeting mess as he walked with Shadow towards the castle. And then they reach the central square where Link catches sight of the castle and he stills, rapidly paling: "What...what happened here?"

Vaati, who never left Central square after talking to the other "Shadow" was sitting on a nearby bench under a nice big tree, reading a nice book. He doesn't notice Shadow OR the young knight.

Shadow shrugs. "Hell if I know. I just…” They sigh “Went to sleep and was suddenly falling from the sky in a new strange land" they half lie, looking down at young Link.  
The child frowns at the news: "I was just here yesterday with papa...it didn't look like this then...do you think I also got dragged to here from whichever force kidnapped you?"  
The shade sits down on the ground, and sighs. "I guess so... can I tell you something crazy?" They turn to him. "I didn't want to freak you out but I have information that could help us... but it's kinda weird..."  
Link nods, looking slightly worried but decided to brave it: "Okay, I can deal with weird. I mean I deal with you, right?"

"Heh, yeah, ok... I know you... in the future... and... I'm also your shadow... that's why I'm called Shadow Link..." Shadow explains.  
Din, they hope he believes them.

Link blinks. Once. Twice. "...so you're named Shadow Link cause you're future me's shadow?" he sums up.  
They nod. "Sort of... let's see, you're 8? That's when I learned that I had a light counterpart... someone showed me this thing called the Dark Mirror, and I was able to watch you through that..."

"...are you watching right now?" Link asks.

Shadow blinks, and quickly snaps their head to look at Link's shadow on the ground which had white eyes for a second before quickly closing them, hiding.  
They chuckle, looking back at Link. "Looks like I just left.." they then lay down, looking at his shadow again.   
"Hey buddy, listen to what I'm about to tell you.." they whisper something to the little shadow, then sit back up.

"..." Link looks down and watches closely, a slight frown on his face. "... that's majorly creepy, do you know that? And hadn't I just seen my own shadow having eyes I likely wouldn't have believed you, you do realize that?"  
The boy sighs, crossing his arms, still looking down, eyes narrowing on his own shadow. "And you, you mind stop watching me, please? That's just plain creepy."  
Shadow laughs nervously. "Yeah, sorry...." They turn away.   
"As a child I was forced to sit by the mirror so they aren't going anywhere..." they jab a thumb at his shadow.  
"Forced? Who forced you to act creepy?" Link asks, immediately going defensive. "Tell me where to find them and I'm gonna tell papa to go kick their butt and free you."

Shadow chuckles at him, then they stop.  
Why don't they remember this?   
They shake their head. "Sadly, he can't be reached... but, if it makes you feel better, you get to kick his butt in the future to save me"  
Link nods, eyes narrowing: "I better..." Then he relaxes slightly, looking sympathetic. "Do you...want a hug? You look like you need one."  
Shadow smiles up at him, and reaches out their arms. "Yes please"

Link swiftly goes to hug them, he’s a lot smaller than Shadow is but still a good hugger. "There, there... it's okay now, right?"  
Shadow wraps their arms around him, one hand on his head.. "Mmm...yes, Link..." they chuckle. "Thanks, bud." They bury their face in him as best as they can, enjoying this cute hug greatly.

Link stays like that a moment longer, trying to give Shadow some comfort. And then he lightly rubs their back, slowly pulling away. "You're okay now, right? No one's forcing you to do anything anymore. And now we just gotta figure out where we ended up, right?"  
Shadow nods, and pats his head. "We sure as heck do... and, we also need to free younger me, and bring us home."  
"Sounds like a plan...so maybe figure out when we are first, right? And what happened that everything looks so weird now?" the child inquires, blinking large eyes up at Shadow.  
They nod, eyes gleaming blue and a determined look on their face. 

"Right. I guess the best way to do that is ask someone the year... then, going off that, see if we should just wait till the present, or, if it's the far past or future in any way," The shade sighs, thinking a bit. "Find the Triforce, I guess? Or a sage?" they ask no one in particular.  
"Okay" Link nods. "Let's go ask someone..." 

He glances around until he spots someone sitting on a bench in the shade of a large tree. "Got one. Let's go ask them!" And with that he snatches Shadow's wrist and pulls them determined after him, moving towards the peacefully reading stranger.   
"Hello, Mister - are you a mister, if not sorry? Anyways, hello! My brother and I are just visiting the town and just wanted to ask what happened here. Why is there so much stuff broken and burned in town? And my brother fell on his head so he doesn't remember the year anymore, so can you tell us the year, too?" he quickly rambles down, barely taking time to breathe.  
Shadow looks at Vaati, trying not to sweat..

Vaati looks up from his book and is...more or less irritated that a small child and...wait Shadow? He raises an eyebrow, but sighs and closes his book. "Oh. It's you, I see you've made a friend? How nice."  
"You know each other?" Link asks confused, an eyebrow raised. "Didn't you say you just appeared here?"  
Shadow freezes up, looking at Vaati, almost getting ptsd...  
Vaati looks at him, a bit...concerned, was something wrong? Why did this random boy look so familiar and why was he so scared of him? "No, I don't know him. Now hush boy the adults are talking."  
Link sticks his tongue out, bristling, his stranger danger senses activating. "You didn't answer any of my questions, mister."

"Well you're...certainly annoying, Sigh fine, the year is 1378, and I have no idea what happened here, they just build and demolish every once and awhile...." he moves aside some of his long bangs from his face. "And what child wouldn't know the year? You must be more ignorant than I thought, boy."  
Link stumbles back as if physically struck, leaning against Shadow wide eyed, mumbling horrified under his breath: "That's... that's eight years...just as big a number as I am old... that's so much..."

Hm....odd....Vaati wondered, what was going on here? What was with these two? He sat there and thought momentarily, he then looked back at Shadow. "What's up with him?" he asks.  
They shake their head, snapping out of... whatever that was, eyes shifting from grey back to blue.. "S-s-sorry sir, uh, I yeuhh... hit my head harder than I thought.. um, thanks for the info!" they pipe up, before turning away with Link.   
"Come on brother, let's find a place to stay.." they dash off, dragging him behind them.


	3. Making friends with the locals

Getting dragged through town by Shadow wasn't too much fun, but Link had his head too full to properly deal with this situation anyway and give too much protest. In fact, as soon as Shadow came to a stop somewhere else, Link's knees gave in and he practically collapsed to the floor, hands burying in the hard dirt beneath him. "Eight years...eight years..." he mumbles, denial and shock rocking him to the core.  
Shadow also falls to their knees, panting.. "Do.. you.. know.. who.. that.. was..?" they bring out between breaths, and turn to him.  
"No..." the child states softly, shaking in shock. "I don't... But he somehow gives me the creeps and the urge to stick something sharp and pointy in his eye."

The shade chuckles, more of their breath back. "That was Vaati.. I don't know how, but he's back, and, last year, I guess, you did stab him in the eye.. but he looked more like a potato" they chuckle, sitting in a more... sit like position  
"So...he's a creepy creeper papa told me to avoid?" the blonde questions, trying to imagine this Vaati as a large purple potato.  
Shadow nods: "Yes, he's the creepiest creeper out there... him and Ganon. Do not engage with them. At all costs..."

"Was he the one to force you to sit in front of that mirror?" the boy asks, puzzling the pieces together.  
"Yeah, Ganon did.. he also forced me to call him master.. I fu-" they cough "Hate him.."  
"Please tell me he's dead, cause he sounds like the worst of the worst" Link whispers, playing with the dirt between his fingers. "If not, his kneecaps are mine."

Vaati, who had used his magic to make himself invisible and followed the two, appears in front of them. "Fortunately, Ganon is long gone, he was defeated by the heroes of the Four Sword."  
Shadow shoots up, hovering a little... and they totally didn't squeak. "I... I know" they float down, stepping in front of Link, growling.   
"What are you doing here..." they hold their tongue, trying not to cuss him out, and eyes glowing red.  
Link meanwhile picks a pointy and sharp looking stone up, eyes narrowed in determination. He's gonna protect Shadow from the creeper!

"I followed you, I knew something was...off I'm not stupid" Vaati says sourly, snarling, but he remembers quite clearly the threat that Link gave him if he didn't follow the rules, and he tried his best to calm his rage.   
"I heard your story, and I am not the same Vaati you know a year ago, I created my Shadow while in that cursed blade..." he looks sadly at the ground. "I...appreciated his existence, but my arrogance drove me mad...it's my fault he's gone now."   
He sighs "You two obviously aren't from this timeline, you need to return home correct?"

The boy holds his stone tight, eyes narrowing: "Why should we believe a word you say?"  
"Why in the world do you think I'm still here now? You really think Zelda would keep me around if I was lying?" Vaati replies, probably already deciding that he disliked this boy, especially since he was the future hero.

Shadow on the other hand saw how... sad, Vaati looked...   
He cared about them?   
They sigh, dropping to the ground.   
"I... I'm in the right timeline..." they look up at Vaati. "You're right, Zelda wouldn't keep around an evil Vaati... but, sorry I'm rambling..."   
They trail off, looking away.

Vaati's gaze softened on Shadow, he knew this one was different, he knew this wasn't his Shadow, but he couldn't help to sympathize for them. He was silent, before his expression went to his usual resting bitch face. "Hm, I see, I knew I felt a strange pulse of powerful magic earlier."  
They chuckle. "Yeah.. that was me... thought breaking the..." They trail off, shaking their head.

Vaati puts his hands together in an excited fashion. "Finally! Something interesting!" He mumbles under his breath. "So I assume that means you don't have a place to stay?" He asks, a forced polite smile on his face.  
Link still looks suspicious, though he lowers his improvised weapon for now. He glances at Shadow unsure, letting him decide what to do next.   
He himself was like a fish out of water here, completely unknowing of what had gone on and was going on,better let someone closer to this time choose.  
Shadow looks at them both, unsure.  
"Yes, I guess... Where do you have in mind...?" they ask Vaati, still a little defensive.  
"I'm sure Zelda wouldn't mind if I let you two use the guest room in the Castle." Vaati replies, flashing a grin at Link to scare the young hero, before looking back at Shadow.  
At Vaati's grin Link tenses, lifting the spiky stone again, danger senses tingling, ready to defend himself in case of a sudden attack. He wasn't scared, but absolutely ready to fight this creeper.

Shadow meanwhile pipes up at that... does that mean they can se- "The castle!? Is...is Link there??" they call out, hope in their voice... man, they hope he'll be happy to see them...  
Vaati groans, remembering that he has to probably explain to the hero that he found two people from two different times, that'll be fun. "Yes....unfortunately..." he says the last word quietly.  
Though... "But... doesn't that mess with time if I meet a future me?" Link utters quietly, tugging Shadow's sleeve to catch their attention.

"Hm, I take back what I said earlier about you, you aren't that ignorant." Vaati laughs at his own joke. "I suppose then maybe it would be best if you weren't seen by him. As far as I know it could cause some....devastating consequences in your time."  
Shadow nods. "Yeah, touching a younger version of yourself would be a bad idea... hmm... maybe younger Link can go find his dad? Or, Vaati, you go get the Helds, then... time is already fucked... tell them the truth?"

Vaati...pauses, he stays quiet before clearing his throat and looking at Link.   
"That would be...a problem." As much as he hated the boy and his future self, he didn't hate him that much to...tell him what happened to his parents, in fact it made him almost feel bad for the poor child.  
Shadow tilts their head. "What would be a problem?"  
"Well...since this is the future...Link's parents...they're..." Vaati looks away, Link never really mentioned his dead parents, but he heard a few conversations about them from the times that he...spied on them. "Dead."

"Papa is dead?" Link repeats wide eyed, horrified, the pointy stone slipping out his slackened grip. "No...he isn't. Papa is all I got left...tell me you're joking! You gotta be joking!" He tears up, sadness by the horrible news then quickly replaced by anger even as he continues to have tears spill down his cheeks: "You're lying!"  
Vaati sighs, kneeling down to the young heros height. "Trust me, I don't hate you enough to lie to you about something as serious as death."  
The boy shakes his head: "No...No he can't be...Papa can't be dead...no..." He sniffles. "No..."  
Vaati doesn't know how to...comfort people, especially children, he was always quite distant from others, he awkwardly stood up and only looked down at the teary eyed hero.  
But Shadow kneels down to him, pulling him into a hug.   
"Shh, it's gonna be ok.. we'll get you back.. Zelda and Vaati are powerful, I'm sure they can come up with something!" they try to comfort him.  
"Yes, let's hope we can get you back" Vaati agrees quietly.  
Link simply buries his face in Shadow's tunic and hides there, form shaking and crying. He just wants his papa...he wants his papa now...

Vaati stood there and watched the two embrace, Shadow was right, however most of his magic was now weaker so he doubt would be anything useful, hopefully Zelda can come up with a solution, who wouldn't want to help a small teary eyed child? Probably not Vaati himself but definitely Zelda.

Shadow only hugs him tighter. It's always good to have someone to cry on...and that reminds them... "Vaati," they voice, still hugging Link. "When we get to the castle, I need to talk with you in private, about..." they jerk a thumb at Link's shadow, which has faint white slits... younger them is jealous.. "Ya know.."  
Vaati nods. "Yes, I know." He glances at Link's shadow. "Speaking of the Castle we should be heading there now, I'm sure Zelda will be "happy" to see me, I'll cast a spell of invisibility on the boy to keep him hidden."  
Link tenses, still shaking and crying. "...I can't talk to her?" he asks,voice muffled from the fabric his face was buried into. "...I can't talk with my best friend?"  
"Maybe, maybe not, we'll see how it turns out." To be honest, the wind mage had no idea what to do, Tell Zelda about the time traveling hero? And risk this entire timeline? Or tell her and see if he could send this boy back home?

Shadow shakes their head. "Guys not telling her then having an invisible Link from another time run around the castle is a terrible idea" they sigh, does no one know time travel etiquette here?   
"Let's just, go straight to Zelda, tell her what happened, and go from there. Sound like a plan?"

Link nods still not wanting to leave his hiding place. At least being able to see one somewhat familiar face would be nice... Though...how did this time-travel even work? How could he be here in another time and yet still have apparently his own shadow watch him from his own time now in the future? What even were the rules of time-travel here? Could he maybe alter things so that he’ll still have his papa in his own time by the time his own eight years have passed? Maybe he should try finding out lots and lots so he can get things to be for the best...

Vaati starts walking off, turning around and gesturing for the two to follow him. "Come, we'll talk about this along the way."  
Shadow picks up Link, and follows after Vaati.


	4. A Familiar Stranger

Shadow hangs back, still holding Link as Vaati loudly declares his arrival by opening the doors to the throne room very loudly and declaring:"Zeldaaaa! I'm baaaack!"  
Link was shaking, face buried in Shadow's tunic as the other carried him. He only wanted comfort and his papa…  
Vaati discretely leans towards Shadow to whisper in his ear. "Don't make it too obvious he's there Shadow..." Before turning back to look at Princess Zelda  
The shade only nods.

Zelda had flinched at the sound of the doors opening and turns towards the sound, dress floating around her until it falls to her sides as she stops  
“Vaati...”

Link tenses at the sound of her voice in Shadow's arms, finally daring to glance up slightly to look at her...there were still a few tears dropping.  
There's a soft gasp, then: “Is that.... Link? What is going on here?? How did you get past the guards?”  
Shadow pops out from around the door "There's a reason"

Vaati bows respectfully, before getting back up and looking Zelda in the eyes. "That's just what I was about to explain Zelda." He gestures towards Shadow. "As you can see, this is...Shadow Link, from the past and some powerful force of magic brought him here, and they need your help to get back home my dear Princess."  
Shadow's eyes widen for a second, before they clear their throat.   
"Actually, I'd be fine with staying in this time.. however, he needs help returning to the past" they bounce little Link in their arms a little.  
Link glances up at Zelda, giving a small gasp, mirroring her earlier reaction: "You're so big...and pretty..."  
The princess is caught off guard by his comment and a hint of pink dusts her face “I- I- I’m sorry? Link.... you....”  
The eight year old manages a wet smile: "Hey Zelly...you're really old now, aren't you?"  
Shadoe lightly shakes him "Shh, 8 years isn't that much older"  
"It's only my whole life and that's a loooong time" the child mutters, reaching to poke his cheek.

Vaati sighs. "Yes....anyway. Princess the young Link needs to get home before...something horrible happens in this timeline. I fear what would occur if he met the older Link..." He mumbles.  
“This.... is a lot to process, I presume we take time to go over this, how he got here is what I believe to be the key to finding how we can send him back” she mutters, still slightly overwhelmed.

"I was in my living room...then I was under a table in the inn" Link explains quietly. "...is papa really dead here, too?"  
“Oh sweet child....” She breathes, glancing at Vaati.  
He shrugs.  
"I told him the truth, you can't get mad at me for that."  
The boy only seems to deflate further, new tears welling up. "So...it is true..."  
Shadow holds him tighter.. "Shh, Link shh it's ok, we'll get you home real soon... the three of us possess powerful magic, I'm sure we can think of a way" they assure, lightly kissing the top of his head before gently setting him down but not letting go yet.  
Link lets out a teary hiccup, nuzzling in the comforting touch: "Okay..."   
He sighs, large blue eyes turning to Zelda and Vaati: "How...how did he die?" Could he stop it?

Zelda lifts her dress so she can kneel on the ground and get closer to little Link's height level. “Link I would like you to listen very carefully, there are good people in this world that will help you no matter where you venture forth towards, I hope you know how much everyone loves you... even your father.”  
Vaati looks away from Link and Zelda, he was more concerned about what would happen if these two stayed any longer but...he started feeling sad himself, thinking about Ezlo and how he turned him into a hat...it was funny at first but now he misses the grumpy old man.

"But...how did he die? Why would he die? He's papa..." Link sniffles, looking at Zelly, wanting to go hug her...which was kinda hard seeing as he was still kinda in Shadow's arms though…  
They shake their head at the royal, a warning look in their orange eyes. "Don't tell him princess, that could alter the future with dire consequences..."  
Holy Din, are they the only person in Hyrule who knows what to and what not to do when time traveling!?!??!?

Vaati snaps back to reality, and changes his focus on Shadow. "Zelda, if you don't mind, these two will be staying at the Castle, we have much to do tomorrow...Shadow, let's discuss the…" He gestures at Link's shadow. "You know what."  
Shadow nods, letting the child go.  
"Yes, let's" they state, turning to Vaati, eyes blue again.  
Link immediately quickly rushes up to hug his best friend, suddenly really old or not, she always would be his best friend and he needed that comfort direly.

Vaati walks off to his room, looking behind him to see if Shadow is following.  
They jog after him, standing at his side... no way were they ever walking in his shadow again

Zelda is stunned by the sudden act of affection but because it’s Link, and he is crying. She forgets her royal protocol and fully accepts the hug and returns the hug ten fold. “I am so happy to see you dearest friend, although I have no idea how or why you are here, I do not know much about travelling through time so I am afraid I might not be much help to you.... all I can pray is that we will be able to return you safely home”  
"Why or how did I even get here? Do you know how I can save papa?" he asks, voice pleading and eyes still teary, glancing up at her from where he hugged her.  
The golden hairs princess caresses the top of his head and gently pats him. “I have only just been informed of your existence in this current time, but if I know the person you are and the people you know... I am sure there can be a way. I cannot tell you much for it is yet to happen for you, but you have helped me many times in the present year and I will always be thankful and grateful of the person you will soon become, you are a courageous young man and if there is any chance I know you will take it and be successful, please have faith dear child.”  
She wipes away his tears and hugs him once more “I’m sure there could be a way to save your father, it is only a matter of time before we find out”

Link nods, sniffling. Hugging her felt reassuring and gave him back the cool he lost. "O...okay...I will try to keep that in mind." He uses his sleeve to wipe his tears away and straightens a little, looking curious: "So...you're all big now...is it as boring as you always dreaded it would be?"  
She hums for a moment thoughtful before answering: “I still have much to learn, my father sets a little time aside for my studies, to teach me about what it is like to rule.... it’s daunting but I am hopeful to be a good ruler of these lands I do get time off too of course, most of my days now I spend with my Li- ahem... with my friends , we train and tell stories and visit the nearby fields to watch the clouds, etcetera... What about you? How have you been up until this day?”   
Link thinks for a moment, before shrugging: "You remember that cave we just found by seeing it from the top of that reeeaaally tall tree? We went in there yesterday and remember that huugee spider? That was fun. Otherwise papa made me start training as a squire...that wasn't as funny, sadly."  
Zelda finds her eyes begging to water at the thought of her own younger days and also Links father. "Well... let’s... ahem, maybe you should speak with the others about what the next plan of action would be.”  
"Yeah...sounds good" he mutters, taking her hand. "Let's go find Shadow?"

The princess' cheeks are dusted pink once more as she thinks... was he always like this? So sweet and cute?   
“Lead the way little hero!” she smiles fondly and stands up, holding his hand  
He grins, tugging her out, only to pause in the doorway: "...maybe we should split up? I search for Shadow, and you for Vaati? We can make here our meeting point, okay?"  
At her agreement, he squeezes her hand again and then quickly speeds off to the right. He was gonna find Shadow! He knew he could do it!


	5. A bunch of trouble and a kiss

Vaati opens the door, letting Shadow into his room before closing it, lighting a nearby candle. "There, now we can talk privately." he says.  
Shadow sighs, plopping down on Vaati's bed. "I think I know why Link and younger me are here.." they utter, looking to confirm he's listening.

The mage gives Shadow a look of confusion, raising an eyebrow. "You do?"  
They nod, "I do. When I broke the dark mirror... heh sorry about that.." Shadow mumbles the last sentence, scratching the back of their neck, eyes green. They quickly shift back to blue as they shake their head "After I broke it, I faded away into light.. and somehow, that light found its way into the future.. so basically, it pulled my soul to the future.." They explain, looking back at Vaati.

He turns around searching through his things on one of the nearby shelves. "Hmmm...odd...I never thought the mirror could do something like that." He replies in thought.  
The shade shakes their head "Me neither. And, as for how Link and younger me are here, I think it's because, at the same time current me died, faded away, past me touched the mirror for the first time, activating it.. and, because of the mirror's activation and deactivation happened at the same time across ages, time done fucked up and tosses both me's into the future..."   
Vaati replies with a "Mhm." Occupied with trying to find whatever it is he is looking for through his pile of things. "It seems like a...reasonable explanation, I don't remember much of it...you must already know that since being in the sword for such a long time drove me mad."

Shadow chuckles nervously, scratching the back of their neck, eyes green again.. "Yeah.. well, at least you're out now and sane?" They half say half ask, silently praying that he won't snap at them.  
The mage chuckles, before going silent and pausing. "Yes...luckily being stabbed in the eye multiple times brought me back to my senses." He continues searching before declaring a triumphant: "Aha!" lulling out a shard of glass that seems...familiar.

Shadow looks at the glass, and their eyes narrow as the final piece of the puzzle falls into place. "And now I know why we were sent to this time specifically... Vaati, what are you doing with that?" They ask, tensing up.  
He turns back to look at Shadow. "I kept one of the pieces of the Dark mirror for...personal reasons..." He clears his throat. "Since you mentioned it I thought maybe this could be a clue to how we can send Link back...since the mirror in the future was broke." He notices how tense Shadow is and quickly sets the shard of glass down. "Did you think I was going to...hurt you? Or something?" He asks, mildly concerned.

The shade looks at him, and lets go of the sheets.. ‘When had I gr-’ "No, heh, um.. the last time me, you, and that mirror where in a room together it... didn't end well..." They say, looking away from the mage.  
"Ah....I...see." He turns away, taking the shard of glass.

Shades tenses up again when Vaati’s fingers brush along its surface... "C-can I go now? There's no need for me to be here..." They say, looking at the door.  
Vaati nods, without saying a word, looking down at the shard of glass, his expression unreadable.

Shadow jumps off of the bed, and runs out the door, leaning on it after it's closed, letting out a huff...  
Then they hear a gasp, and turn to see Link, not the small one but the one from this time, staring at them wide eyed.

"Wait a second. Wait, wait, wait-" Link rushes forward, barely an arms length away when he comes to a stop.   
"Are you- you're actually- how-" There is a wide smile on his face, slightly disbelieving yet clearly excited at the prospect that he's not hallucinating. "You're here?!"

Shadow chuckles, and before they can stop themselves, they're hugging him. "Oh Link, I" they sniff "Yes, yes I'm here.." they mumble into his neck.  
Link grins, shoving his nose into Shadow's hair. "You're back," he mutters happily, suppressing the urge to cry outta happiness. Cause apparently mature knights don't do that.   
"Vio can finally stop staying up all night trying to bring you back." He laughs. "I'm so glad you're here."

The shade chuckles "I guess Vio wouldn't mind if I do this then?" They lean to kiss him.  
Link really did try to stop laughing, but as Shadow comes closer, he realizes he wouldn't be able to in time and ducks out of the way to cover his mouth with a hand. "He certainly wouldn't complain," he manages to say, mouth still covered and still chuckling. "But don't tell 'im I said that."

Shadow stops, that wasn't the reaction they were expecting... wait, did they stay split? They blush, eyes shifting from pink to green... exactly the person they think they're talking to. "Oh, uhm, are you ... still split?" they ask, a bit embarrassed they almost kissed Green.

"What? Oh, uhm, no? Uhhh... We can? If you want?" Link has to smile at Shadow's flushed face and embarrassed expression. "Hypothetically, if you were to kiss me right now, you'd be kissing all four of us? Wait, shit, when I put it that way it sounds weird, uhhhhhhhhh…"  
Shadow chuckles... so he's whole right now. "I just want to kiss you right now, I don't care who's... in there" They tap his head, then run that finger down his cheek, to his jaw, and lift it up a bit... odd, why are they slightly taller?

Link feels a flush cover his cheeks. "O-oh! Well in that case, uhm... go ahead? I'm not gonna... stop you or... anything…"  
They smirk, eyes pink again "Good" they then lean down, and steal the hero's first kiss.

The little Link meanwhile skitters around the corner just in time to see this kiss happen. He comes to a prompt halt, eyes shooting open in surprise. Well...at least other guy has his back turned to him...but so much for Shadow not knowing anybody here...dirty liar.

Vaati, at the same time, exits his room, only to see Shadow and his sworn enemy both kissing, he groans. "Do you have to do that here?" He asks, annoyed.

Shadow breaks the kiss, looking right at Vaati... s... sh... shit… they can't move, they want to run, they want to- quick as a flash, they dive into Link's shadow.

Older Link blinks, trying to process what exactly just happened. Shadow kissed him, someone else said something, Shadow's disappeared, why is there a child right there... "H-huh?"  
"Huh..." Little Link blinks, before giving a small wave at the stranger. "Hi. You know Shadow?"  
"Uhm, yeah," he replies intelligently, looking down at the smaller. "He's... a friend of mine, I guess you could say."

Vaati looks over at little Link, then at older Link, and then it hits him like a brick, he looks at little Link, and angrily mouths at him: "YOU CAN'T LET HIM SEE YOU GET OUT OF HERE!"  
"Why?" The child asks, before pausing, eyes widening in realisation. "Wait, is he...?"

Link looks to the side, blinking in surprise at the wind mage, momentarily not recognizing him, still dazzled by the kiss. "Oh, uhm... hi. Sorry for... standing in front of your door?"  
"Link, I can get angry about that later, right now I need you to leave please." Vaati sneers, still gesturing to the younger hero to leave.

Mentioned youth's eyes seem to pop out of his head as he looks down at apparently older Link's Shadow, comprehension dawning and slowly but surely causing the blood to drain his face: "Wait...you like like him? Him out of everyone?"  
Older Link blinks. "I'm... sorry? I don't think I quite... understand?" He looks between Vaati (who looked like he was about to throw the child out the nearest window) and said child, brow furrowed. "You say that as if it's a bad thing."

"No, that's okay, everything's okay" little Link's smile's a little too wide. "Excuse me please, I'm gonna find myself a pillow to scream in cuz I'm a just a stupid random kid who can't read obvious signs. Bye!" He waves, turns on his heels and then quickly dashes away.  
Vaati lets out a sigh of relief. "Thank Hylia he left....."

Link looks at the other and almost immediately does a double take, the blissful haze from the kiss finally lifting. "Oh, goddesses! Vaati?! What are you doing here?? How long have you been here? How did you get here without me knowing?!"  
Vaati looks at Link, dumbfounded, he knows the hero was easily distracted but he didn't realize he...is this stupid. "Your idiocy amazes me."

Shadow reaches out a hand, and tugs on Link's boot, then points away, down the hall...they just want to get the heck outta here  
Link would be lying if he said that Vaati's comment didn't sting, but then Shadow pulls on his boot. "I've been focusing on more important things."   
Another tug. "Okay, since you haven't gone around murdering and kidnapping people I guess I'll forget you're here. Just for right now though." He lightly scuffs his boot onto his shadow after another tug. "Just, like... don't hurt anyone?"

Vaati nods. "Yes I know, now stop nagging me." He says, wanting Link to leave because he just in general didn't like him, and so that he doesn't run into Little Link again.  
"Right, right," the knight says, giving Vaati a tense smile before turning on his heel and taking off down the hall. "Thanks!" he calls, albeit kinda insincerely, before turning a corner and leaving the other where he stood.  
Vaati mumbles something unsavory about Link, before disappearing back in his room.


	6. A little bit of chaos...

In a different hallway little Link finally comes to a standstill, panting, realizing he was running towards where he and his papa live...which here wasn't the case. He doesn't have a room here...he was all alone cause even Shadow knew his older self - brothers, who ever believed that - and he knows logically he should return to the throne room and wait for Zelda...though technically he has found both of them already and...   
This situation was crazy. Just plain crazy. He leans against the wall, sliding down it to sit, curling up. He just wants his papa...he would know what to do... And because he doesn't have a room, he stays in the hallway.   
And because he didn't have a pillow, he uses his hands to muffle his frustrated scream...

On the other end of the rather long hallway, older Link comes to a careful stop, bracing his arm against the wall as he took a few deep breaths. He isn't sure why he's come to this hallway, as he doesn't come over here very often, but he is here and he was away from people.

The child's still curled up, not noticing the other approach. He just wants to have his papa hug him...the future was crazy... ...and Shadow lied to him about knowing nobody and probably only cared about him a bit cause they like like his future version...

Sparing a quick glance down the hall, the teenager has to look again when he sees the same kid from earlier curled up against the wall. Their words from earlier caus his brows to furrow and for him to ultimately not ask Shadow where he is going. Walking down the hall and to the kid's side, he kneels down. "H-hey? You alright?"

At the sudden voice the boy's head snaps up, startled, accidentally hitting the other person's nose. "Oh gosh...sorry!" he starts babbling out, only to realize who it was.   
Cue paling and freaking out.   
"Oh no, no, no! I touched you! Now everything is gonna descend into chaos with everyone dead and the timeline crushed to pieces and...!"  
"What..." the elder starts, holding his nose but also laughing lightly. "What are you talking about? Nobody's gonna die, uhm... can I ask for your name? Or is that... weird?"

The youth's breathing speeds up with panic and he looks at the holder's shadow: "Shadow! I touched him! Are we all gonna die now!? Is the timeline's gonna end?! Are we already dying?! What horrific consequences will there be?! Help meeeeee!!!"

The shade emerges, and looks at the Links. "I think we're fine..."  
"But I touched him - accidentally of course only - and Vaati said there'd be consequences!"  
They shrug. "I mostly learned that from fiction books, and plus, I told you not to trust that purple potato... touching him seems to be fine... now, run along and go find Zelda, us adults need to have a long, boring talk.. ok?"

"...is his nose okay...? Please tell me I didn't break his nose..." Little Link mutters, feeling faint from his earlier freak out.  
Older Link stops rubbing at his nose, checking to see if blood is leaking from it. "Nah, it's fine!! I've had worse injuries," he laughs, offering the kid a hand to stand up.

After a second of hesitation the boy accepts the hand letting himself be pulled to his feet: "Woah...so the purple potato really had no idea...we're still alive and no catastrophe happened thankfully..."   
He sighs, letting go. "Nice meeting you, Link." Then he turns to Shadow: "Should I find Zelly and tell her the discussion about the next step of action will have to wait some cause you wanna spent some time with your obvious like like?"

Shadow turns to little Link "He's not a.." I blush.. "Yeah, ahem.. that sounds like a good idea... you go inform the princess, and I'll hang out with my friend who hasn't seen me in a year..." they splurt out, a bit flustered... only a bit  
"So much for not knowing anyone here" the boy mutters out, reaching up to try patting their shoulder. "See you later!"   
And with that he quickly darts off. Hopefully his older version wouldn't realize that he knew his name without any introduction... Or their otherwise obvious similarities... And if he did... Well, at least Shadow was there to explain.   
...   
Link still wants his papa's hugs though...

As the kid disappears, older Link looks to Shadow. "Do we... actually have something? To talk about?" He blinks at Shadow's flushed face. "Or do you have... other ideas?"  
They chuckle "Both, actually.." they smirk. "What do you wanna do fiiirst~?"

The knight flushes at Shadow's tone, looking around the hallway. "Well, uhm... I think the stuff you wanna do means we should... get a room?" He flushes further at his own wording. "Yeah. A room."  
The shade walks up behind him, and leans to whisper in his ear "hmmm yes, but, do the others want me doing... that~ to them?" they chuckle the word that, rubbing a hand on Link's side…  
"You should split first.. besides, I want Vio~"

There was a rather deep blush on Link's face by this point. "O-oh, well... I think that... would be good. Blue would hate everything if... that happened and he was... in the body. At the time." He glances back at them, trying to smile through the flush. "Let's get to my room first?"

As Zelda is looking around for Vaati to discuss the next plan of action she walks down the same hallway as Shadow and Link, but then she notices their positions and flushes expressions.   
“Oh I-... I’m sorry if I’m .... interrupting” she looks away/turns around and clears her throat softly to give them privacy and attempts to collect herself even though someone is making her Link blush, making her the smallest bit jealous. “I was looking for Vaati, but I understand he is not here... my apologies...”  
The princess keeps her hands entwined together and takes a step away from the pair, preparing to leave the hallway “If you would like to... Link has his own room on the upper floor, I’ll leave you alone... sorry again for interrupting...”

Link cleared his throat, doing his best to smile through the blush. "It's okay! I think. Uhm, yeah, thank you. We probably should... ya know, get outta the hallway." He gives Shadow a pointed look, though it probably wasn't very effective.   
"Not my fault I got attacked," he mutters, grabbing Shadow's wrist and starting to walk down the hall. "Sorry you had to... uhm, yeah! See. Us," he calls to her, trying to rub the blush off of his face. "Cya later!"

Zelda walks around the corner and leans against the wall regaining herself. 'That was... difficult to watch... no Zelda what are you thinking? Of course this happened! It’s not like you had anything with him anyway, you’re just friends... you’ve always been friends... you will always BE friends... why am I so foolish? Sigh. Alright let’s try to forget about it and focus on finding Vaati.'  
And thus she makes her way over to where his room is, trying her best to still her thoughts.

Shadow smirks as Link drags them to his room... wait... "Link, don't forget to split, heh, I don't want Blue yelling at me later"  
The knight rolls his eyes. "I'm not gonna forget to split." He tries to think of an analogy that he could compare it with, but his brain was short circuiting at the moment.   
He blames Shadow for that. "I'm just waiting. Until we get closer. To the room."  
Mentioned chuckles. "Good.. then let's hurry up!" They declare excited.

Link then purposely slowes his pace from a fast walk to a normal one. "What happens if I refuse?"  
Shadow stops, and fake pouts... then they shove him against a wall. "Well, then all four of you are gonna have to deal with this." They declare as they quickly bite his neck.  
A loud squeak rips from the blonde's throat, conflicted of whether or not he should let Shadow continue or not. "N-no, stop it. You can't do... that," he tries to say boldly, pushing back against him. "Someone's going to come after you. After we split." Eek, this is only half working.  
Shadow chuckles, leaning close to his lips. "Then, we better get going, or I'm going to make three of you very mad" they breathe, tracing his jawline…

Link bites his lip, pushing Shadow off of him and beginning to walk down the hall again, pace fast and face covered. "Then don't distract me."  
The other nods, following behind.. them? Them... They then chuckle "You're the one who started it, silly." They tap their shoulder, but don't say anything else, till they stop... wherever here is.  
"Okay, uh... this is my room," Link explains, still flustered and half hiding his face. He opens the door and walks in, letting Shadow follow in afterwards. "If you give me, like... a minute or two, I can... split.

Shadow lays on Link's bed, fake yawning a bit.. "Alright.." they giggle. "Split for me, baby" they snort at their own joke.  
Link rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, just... hang on a moment." He closes his eyes, dropping the tension from his shoulders.  
Shadow flips, so they're laying on their back, waiting for either Vio to jump on or near them so they can shower him with kisses, or to be punched in the face by Blue.

Link doesn't move for the space of 57 seconds before wincing. Then there was a brief flash of light before four boys fall to the floor where the one had stood before. "Ow!" one exclaims, though it was difficult to tell who because all of them were rubbing various parts of their bodies.  
Shadow smirks a bit, excited to see who'll come over to them first.

They all stand with a varying degree of grace, and those who value their life definitely won't say that Blue fell again half way up.   
Green waved: "Heya, Shadow!"   
Red grins: "Hiiiii!!"   
Blue points at him: "You're dead to me."   
Vio brushes off his tunic: "Hello."

Shadow looks at them all with a big grin on their face... man, seeing them all... well, most of them... happy at me… their eyes shimmered like the sun, and they let out a stupid happy laugh at that. "Hehee guys!"  
As soon as Shadow had spoken, Green, Red, and Blue look to Vio, who looks back with a raised brow. "What?"   
Blue snorts: "Whaddya mean what, go be gay." Green punches his shoulder lightly but was also laughing: "Blue!"   
Red smiles widely, grabbing the other two by their tunics: "Okay, we'll go now! You guys have fun!"   
Vio just rolls his eyes as the others leave the room, the lightest of blushes covering his cheeks as the door clicks shut behind them.

Shadow watches Red drag the others out, then turns to Vio. They trace a random shape on the sheets in front of them, silently telling him to lay there.

Red lets the others go as soon as they were out of the room, but if he has let his hands drop to hold onto their hands... well, neither of them complains?  
The red clad hero confesses quietly "Ya know, I like being split better." Green smiles, squeezing his hand: "So do I, Red." Red giggles: "Then do you think we could... do it more often? Or something?" He is pouting a little bit.   
Blue sighs: "Red, you know why we don't do it that often." Red breathes through his nose frustrated, his skipping slowing to a normal walk: "Yeah, I guess so..."  
Blue suddenly snaps: "Training grounds. Someone spar with me." Green smirks at the challenge: "Ooh hoo hoo, you're asking for it, Blue." Blue grins right back: "Oh, I'm sure I am."   
Red swings their linked hands in time with his steps: "I can referee for you!! If... if you want?" Green smiles at him: "Of course, Red! You should be included." Blue rolls his eyes, but he is smiling: "Great. Now let's pick up the pace! I wanna slap somebody!" They all laugh, regardless of whether they thought Blue was joking or not.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is also a roleplay on Discord!
> 
> If you wanna join, here's the link  
> https://discord.gg/NkAMK3dF4r


End file.
